Monday, July 13, 2015

This is how a prominent Arab writer, Walid Abimerchid, started his latest newspaper column last week, going on to describe a “growing fatigue with the whole Palestine issue.”

[...]

In the past months, the Palestinian government resigned, Hamas split into at least three factions and the lengthening shadow of ISIS killers looms over the Sinai Peninsula in neighboring Egypt.

But there are other reasons the Palestine issue has lost much of its luster for many Arabs. One reason was cited the other evening by a Jordanian businessman, Abu Furas, at a Ramadan fast-breaking dinner in London. “Today, no Arab feels safe in his country,” he said. “Ironically, the sole exceptions are Palestinians in the West Bank because they know Israel will defend them if ISIS attacks. Even in Gaza, most people secretly believe that Israel is their ultimate protection against ISIS fighters trying to strike roots in the Sinai.”